


Kissed by Northern Lights

by Aridette



Series: Shaytham short stories [2]
Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Comfort, Fluff, M/M, Northern Lights
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-13
Updated: 2015-11-13
Packaged: 2018-05-01 12:13:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5205479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aridette/pseuds/Aridette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nights aboard the Morrigan are sometimes (un)expectedly cold, but Shay knows a few ways to stay warm. He doesn't mind sharing that knowledge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kissed by Northern Lights

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shadowstalker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowstalker/gifts), [brokibrodinson](https://archiveofourown.org/users/brokibrodinson/gifts), [ChloeMorrison](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChloeMorrison/gifts).



> This time 'round I blame the lot of you who commented on the first installment of this story. I never thought I would actually write Shaytham, omg. But [shatinn](shatinn.tumblr.com)'s gifsets never cease to inspire me. You go girl! This particular idea took shape thanks to these two wonderful gifsets [here](http://shatinn.tumblr.com/post/132170292174/so-beautiful) and [here](http://shatinn.tumblr.com/post/133152635959/open-air) :3
> 
> Again, I wrote this when I couldn't sleep (checking for mistakes in the morning, but should you find any terrible ones I won't mind the help). Seems to be a prerequesite for writing Shaytham. I hope you enjoy this little sequel :)

It was long past midday before the Grandmaster arrived back at the docks, a look of urgency on his face that was not as unusual in the past weeks as Shay liked to make himself believe. Once he stepped on board though, the concern, all too visible on his face before, vanished. With a few strides he reached the helm.

“If the wind holds we can be on our way in a short while.” Shay said in way of greeting. “Gist and a few men are still away to restock our supplies.”  
Haytham nodded curtly and went to stand by the railing, clutching it tightly instead of wasting his energy by pacing up and down the width of the ship as he was prone to.

“Where will we be heading?” Shay asked after a while.  
Although he had made it clear on more than one occasion that he didn't like not knowing all the details he ought to know, the Grandmaster still sometimes gave him hardly that.  
“Back to New York. For now.” came the short reply.

“At least it will take us out of this bloody cold then.” Shay commented, hoping to lighten the mood that way.  
It did not work. It hardly did, with Haytham anyway. He remained stubbornly silent.

Then he turned. “I have letters to write. Best to get that done while there's still some natural light.” Again he nodded, more to himself now, and excused himself to Shay's cabin.  
He did not mind Haytham tending to his correspondence in there. Especially now that he had officially been a Templar for quite some time, he would not like the crewmen to walk in on him and find out things they had better remain unaware of after all.

It was perhaps half an hour before the men returned. With everyone on board and everything ready and in place for their journey back home, they set sail.

The night that slowly crept up on them a few hours later promised to be eerily cold and clear. The snowy shore shone bright in the light of the full moon, the sun having disappeared behind the mountains already. Shay had no doubt that in a few days, a week at best, the passage they had taken would be thoroughly frozen up. Rationally, he knew the Morrigan could take on stronger ice shields than most vessels her size. Yet he could not find it in himself to look forward to such occasions. Should they get stuck, there was only little hope.  
As it was though, the worst of their journey laid behind them.

Most of the crew had retreated below decks where the cold would not get to them as quickly. Only the few poor bastards assigned to the night watch remained out in the open. They brought the Morrigan to anchor a little ways off the coast, so that the moon would not easily disappear behind the mountains as well as the hours passed on towards morning. After all, it provided what little light they would need to notice an iceberg coming their way, however unlikely it was.

Shay stood by the railing towards the end of the quarterdeck where a single lantern kept him company. His breath came out in foggy puffs of air as he looked over the water, watching the waves softly crash against the hull below.  
Once the sun had set and the last clouds had cleared away, pale green lights started to flood the skies. Their intensity flickered like a candle in the wind. At times they were brighter than the stars, making it impossible to glimpse any but the brightest among them. Other times the green and pink hues were almost indistinguishable from the deep blue nighttime sky. They had appeared like clouds bringing on a fatal storm, neither fast nor slow, but steadily, until they covered the entire sky. In the distance they almost seemed to touch the mountains.

He leaned against the steady wooden barrier and looked up towards the sky. Soft footsteps told him he was not entirely alone. With easy nonchalance he turned his head around without moving from his spot. Haytham stood to his left, looking almost hesitantly.

“I will never understand,” he began, his voice strangely loud and stern in the quiet of the night. A little more quietly he continued “What would make you stay outside longer than necessary in this ungodly iciness.”

Shay smiled, more to himself than at Haytham, and looked back across the waters where a new bout of lights, now more intensely pink than pale green, danced across the sky.  
“I don't mind the cold so much” he said finally. “But it is unlikely we should come across anything more wondrous or beautiful anywhere else. Don't you think?”

Haytham hummed as though he had to give thought to the notion. In a few slow steps he came closer, standing by the lantern as he, too, openly directed his gaze towards the sky. 

Shay had noticed before that the Grandmaster never showed open interest in anything. Even when confronted with new places and things never seen by men before, he would feign disinterest and only spare the smallest of glimpses. It had taken Shay a while to realize that the habit stemmed less from actual disinterest, but rather the need to conceal his thoughts and motives at every twist and turn his life had taken. To see him watch the lights with open wonder now, made Shay's heart beat a little faster. 

Still staying where he had been all along, he watched Haytham.  
Reflections of the Northern Lights danced across his skin, giving him a much softer look than he would ever allow himself in public. His eyes shone bright, betraying their natural colour to seem almost green as well. After a few minutes of quiet, he absentmindedly began to clench and unclench his hands, kneading his palms in an attempt at keeping them warm.

Shay easily pushed away from the railing and stood besides the other man. With a small gasp Haytham turned towards him, momentarily taken aback by their sudden proximity. He soon relaxed when Shay gave him one of the private smiles he reserved for their stolen moments alone together. “Let me.” he offered in an altogether too soft voice, but Haytham had no intentions to complain when Shay took his hands and held them between his own. “You should get gloves before our next journey.” he whispered before he raised the hands to his lips and kissed each one of the icy cold knuckles.

Haytham laughed quietly, a somewhat aborted sound of honest amusement. “It would certainly help, but who would warm me up then?”  
Two can play this game, he thought to himself. Although Shay had a point nonetheless.  
“I'm sure something could be arranged.” Shay muttered, deploying his more playful tone, and pushed Haytham's hands in under the leather of his own coat where it gave way to the waistcoat.  
Haytham did not hesitate a moment to push his hands farther under the fabric until he was practically embracing the other man.

It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision that had both men frozen in their spots momentarily.  
Shay quickly scanned the deck for any unwanted bystanders, but found they were thoroughly alone. Two sailors sat huddled together at the other end of the ship, their backs turned to them. He relaxed, knowing they were safe from prying eyes for now and raised his arms to pull Haytham a little closer before the other man could pull away.  
“It's alright.” he said quietly, reassuringly.

His hands lazily roamed up and down Haytham's back, but when, even after long minutes of watching the lights above in their current position, the body beneath all those layers of fabric did not even begin to warm up, he pulled away gently.  
“I think it's time to try something else.”

“And by 'something else' you mean-?” Haytham inquired, very well knowing what Shay was alluding to. He could not help the shiver running up his spine at the sudden loss of warmth, although he would never admit it, come morning.  
“Something,” Shay grinned mischievously as he turned Haytham around by his shoulders “That'd best happen behind closed doors.” He whispered the last bit in his ear.  
The Northern Lights danced above them undisturbed as he gently pushed the older man towards his cabin. 

He would not have Haytham freeze, whatever it took. Although he could hardly complain about the ways they had found to stay warm in the almost arctic cold.


End file.
